Families of victims from the September 11, 2001 attacks confronted former presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden at the Ground Zero memorial on September 11, 2026, accusing their administrations of protecting Saudi Arabia.
Terry Strada, widow of victim Tom Strada, addressed the crowd, alleging that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia fomented "anti-American terrorism" and aided the hijackers. "For 25 years, administration after administration, including leaders in front of us here today, chose to protect the Saudis instead of standing with the 9/11 families," Strada stated. "They broke promises both public and private. It has been one betrayal after another."
She specifically urged former President Donald Trump, who was attending a separate memorial at the Pentagon, to "tell the Saudis to stop lying" and to make clear that friendship with the U.S. is conditional on acknowledging their role in the attacks. Strada also directly addressed Vice President JD Vance, who was present at the memorial, asking him to "carry that message back" and support the families.
Another relative, whose aunt Lisa Marie Terry died in the attacks, echoed these sentiments, stating, "For 25 years the Deep State has hidden the truth." This individual issued a plea to President Trump, calling him "our last hope" to "release the unredacted files that implicate Saudi Arabia while what's left of the victims' families are still alive to see it."
The families are pressing the current Trump administration to declassify records, including phone logs reportedly linked to Omar al-Bayoumi, a Saudi national identified by the FBI in 2022 documents as a Saudi intelligence agent. Their decade-long lawsuit against the kingdom is progressing toward a trial.
The White House indicated last week that Trump's team is working to identify records responsive to the families' request. Saudi Arabia has consistently denied any involvement in the attacks and has contested the families' lawsuit in federal court for years. Fifteen of the 19 hijackers on 9/11 were Saudi nationals.
Trump has maintained close ties with Saudi Arabia, notably inviting Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in November and advocating for a deal to provide the kingdom with nuclear enrichment technology. Saudi forces have allowed American military bases for strikes against Iran since February.
